Money, Food, Books,Weather & Easter
(the important stuff)

Money

At the last count (June 2008) there were two banks and
 four ATMs in Molivos, all clustered at the entrance to the village on the road
 leading towards the harbour, apart from one ATM, belonging to Piraeas Bank, at the bottom of the harbour end of the Agora opposite the Sansibal Restaurant..
In Petra there is an ATM kiosk next to the OTE on the sea-front, plus
three conventional ATMs, one at the Hotel Ilion, also on the sea-front not far from
the bus stop in the direction of Molivos,
A second is in the one bank (The Co-Operative Bank of Lesvos-Limnos)
which has recently moved to smart new premises on the corner of
the war-memorial square between the bus stop and the main sea-front square.
And there is now (2008) a third at the farmers' co-op on the one-way system
at the Molivos end of the village.
   (The ATMs take Maestro and Cirrus cards, as well as credit cards.)
 Nirvana Travel, towards the Anaxos end of the sea-front,
 operates a bureau de change service.

The post offices in both villages will also change money and travellers' cheques.

Food & Drink

In both Molivos and Petra you will be spoilt for choice, with restaurants and tavernas
 spread through the town (though for fresh fish in Molivos head towards the harbour -
 time it right and your meal may come straight
 from the boat to the grill).
 In Anaxos most of the tavernas are spread along the back
 of the beach facing the sea.
  No recommendations or star ratings here (I have too many
friends to lose), but you will be unlucky if you find a bad meal.
The Captain's Platter,Molivos        Most dishes are basically Greek, though menus are organised
 into courses to suit the northern European taste. (If you really insist, it is possible
 to find an all-day English breakfast with Guinness and wide-screen TV football in Petra).

Tourism, the microwave, and government regulation have made the barely warm meals
 of legend almost extinct. Similarly almost all tavernas now work from a printed menu:
 in Molivos only the Alonia (at the edge of the village on the road towards Efthalou),
and Perikles (a traditional 'taverna exochiko'outside the village)
maintain the tradition of choosing from the kitchen,
 and even here the choices are laid out in chilled displays rather than
the simmering pans of a few years ago.

Books & Maps

Guidebooks

There are large sections on Lesvos in Lonely Planet, the Rough Guide to the Dodecanese
 & East Aegean, Thomas Cook's Greek Island Hopping, and all the many other general
English guides to Greece, but the only English-language guides devoted to the island
 are from several specialist Greek publishers, all well-illustrated, comprehensive
 and almost indistinguishable from each other. They are available everywhere in Lesvos;
 in the UK Hellenic Bookservice (www.hellenicbookservice.com)
lists at least one of them.  

A new guide, 'Landmark Visitors' Guide to Lesvos' was published in
March 2004 and can be ordered from www.amazon.co.uk
(As of May 2004 it does not seem to have reached Lesvos)

However for now the best guide to the island is 'Lesbos' by Thomas Schröder, unfortunately published only in German. Get it from www.amazon.de,
from the Seagull gallery on Molivos Harbour,
 or from Rodi (Ρόδι) bookshop in Petra.

Maps

There are many maps of the island on sale in Lesvos: the only accurate and
up-to-date one is 'Lesbos' published by Road Editions of Athens
 (Sheet 212; 1:70000) and based on Greek Army surveys.
It is distributed in the UK by Portfolio and is available from
www.amazon.co.uk or through any bookshop.

Others

'Aeolian Lesbos' by Lisa Evert (Constellation Books, Athens,
 published in the UK by Millbank Books)
A coffee-table book of Lisa Evert's gorgeous photographs of Lesvos,
introduced with historical essays by the directors of the government
departments of archaeology for Lesvos.

'The Greek-o-File' edited with contributions by Sylvia & Terry Cook.
 (www.greekofile.co.uk)
An annual collection of articles etc. on Greece, Greek life,
 holidaying, working, and settling in Greece.
 The editors have a home in Eresos and often include
features on Lesvos.

 These are both available from bookshops and www.amazon.co.uk

  English Books

Imported books are expensive in Greece, because of distribution arrangements and
 taxation (unlike the UK, books are subject to ΦΠΑ, the local equivalent of VAT ),
 so if you like reading on holiday, it is best to bring your books with you.
  Imported books are available in shops that sell foreign newspapers. 
English translations of modern Greek classics are published, at more reasonable prices,
 by Kedros and Efstathiadis (the latter also issue reprints of titles by English authors
 on Greek subjects). They are available from Rodi (Ρόδι) in Petra, and from
 Panagiottis Karakatzanis' bookshop in Molivos.
 (To find either of these shops, carry on uphill from the respective post offices:
 in Petra Rodi is on the left under the church on the rock (Panagia Glykofilousa),
 in Molivos just off to the right at the next crossing)

    Weather

If you want to explore Lesvos it is best to visit in
 May, June or September.
 The sun is usually reliable, and it is pleasantly warm
 rather than suffocatingly hot.
Climate change has come to the Greek islands:
 in the last couple of years mid-summer temperatures
 have reached 40°C, while springs have become later
 and wetter, and autumn storms more violent.
 And for the past two winters it has snowed heavily.

Molivos, Petra, and Anaxos face west and north-west and are backed
 by a 3000' mountain range, so often have their own weather system, which may
 be completely different from what is going on at the nearest weather station at
Mitilene Airport, which faces east thirty miles away to the south-east as the crow flies.
 Therefore the charts and forecasts here are only indications of what might be
happening in the north of the island.
For an up-to-date forecast click here

Easter

Easter Sunday   Year Greek Orthodox Western       2008 27 April 23 March 2009 19 April 12 April 2010 4 April 4 April 2011 24 April 24 April 2012 15 April 8 April 2013 5 May 31 March 2014 20 April 20 April 2015 12 April 5 April 2016 1 May 27 March 2017 16 April 16 April 2018 8 April 1 April 2019 28 April 21 April 2020 19 April 12 April 2021 2 May 4 April 2022 24 April 17 April 2023 16 April 9 April

Easter is the main festival of the Greek year,
and is a favourite time for visits,
 the opportunity to share in the celebrations
usually combining with ideal spring weather
for a memorable experience.
The Orthodox calendar varies from the
 "Western" Roman Catholic and Protestant one,
 resulting in different Easter dates in most years.
 Time it right and the family
may get two lots of eggs.

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